As the night’s draw in and the weather turns chillier, my thoughts always turn to snuggling up under a blanket with a good book. Halloween is a great time to find a new favourite read - whether magical or spooky so I’m bringing you some of the newest choices around. ‘Mirabelle Gets Up to Mischief,’ … Continue reading Happy Halloween!
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this funny, silly, reassuring not bedtime story, bedtime story! Make sure you read Eoin’s piece about why he finally conceded to his young son’s taste for monsters with this scary (but not really) tale. Get ready for ‘The World’s Scariest Monster’ and his friends to take … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘This Book is Not a Bedtime Story!’ by Eoin McLaughlin and Robert Starling.
You know the drill when it comes to fairytales - princess gets locked in a tower/ put to sleep/ kidnapped by a witch and is rescued by a handsome prince, right? Wrong! What I have for you today are four fabulous collections of reimagined fairy tales for a more modern era. ‘Fearless Fairy Tales,’ by … Continue reading Fairy Tales Reimagined
I am so pleased that Michelle Harrison is bringing her special brand of magic to a brand new series of first chapter books for newly confident readers. This first instalment was born out of her love for often unwanted black cats. Make sure you read Michelle’s piece about why black cats are so magical. When … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Midnight Magic,’ by Michelle Harrison, illustrated by Elissa Elwick.
Did you know that it’s 75 years since the publication of one of Sweden’s most popular literary exports? Originally created for her daughter during the dark times of World War Two, Astrid Lindgren wanted to create a new kind of female character - one who was free-spirited and free-thinking. As thus was born an iconic … Continue reading Pippi Longstocking’s 75th Anniversary
Well the shortlist for this year’s CLiPPA (CLOE Children’s Poetry Award) has been announced and we can all start making some new additions to our poetry diets. As well as sharing that shortlist with you now, I also have a piece from one of the nominees, A.F. Harrold about just how he whittled down the … Continue reading The CLiPPA 2020 – with a special piece from A.F. Harrold
It’s Chriiiisssstmaaass!!!! Well, almost. But it’s definitely time to start buying Christmas books for all your favourite people. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to ‘Billy and the Balloons.’ Billy was out with his dad selling balloons on Christmas Eve and was desperate to hold the bunch, but dad keeps telling him that … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Billy and the Balloons,’ by Elizabeth Dale, illustrated by Patrick Corrigan.
Today I’m showcasing the new ‘Lottie Loves Nature’ title: ‘Frog Frenzy.’ This is a brilliant series for newly confident readers or anyone who’s nutty about nature! Today, I’ve got a special post from author, Jane Clarke about her lifetime of loving nature and will be championing the title again in November on the Federation of … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Lottie Loves Nature: Frog Frenzy,’ by Jane Clarke, illustrated by James Brown.
Becoming a big sister is a big deal! It can sometimes be difficult for children to adapt to the idea of life with another sibling but stories like ‘Sona Sharma’ will help reassure them that they will be just as loved and important even after the new baby has arrived. Sona is very used to … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Sona Sharma Very Best Big Sister,’ by Chitra Soundar, illustrated by Jen Khatun.
Today’s stop is brought to you by the letter ‘L’ for ‘Library Girl and Book Boy’ as we journey through the alphabet with the newest addition to the award-winning ‘Oi Frog!’ series. If you’re an animal and want to know where to sit, Frog is your go-to amphibian, but he seems to bet getting weary … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Oi Aardvark!’ by Kes Gray & Jim Field.
Today I’m sharing with you a beautiful picture book about a girl called Fia who dreams of crossing the water in the bay to visit the mythical island of Hy Brasil. I also have a special piece written author, Patricia Forde, about what inspires her writing. The mythical island of Hy Brasil only appears once … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘To the Island,’ by Patricia Forde, illustrated by Nicola Bernardelli.
We are big fans of information books in this household and are always pleased when something a little different comes our way. The ‘Turn and Learn’ series from Little Tiger Press features slide and reveal wheels which delighted Book Boy Jr. Our World allows readers to explore five fascinating habitats: desert, rainforest, arctic, and the … Continue reading The ‘Turn and Learn’ series – written by Isabel Otter and illustrated by Hannah Tolson.
Today I have not one, not two, but three glorious picture books all about books! This joyous read joins a T-Rex as she discovers books and reading for the very first time. As she learns that books have amazing powers to transform a bedroom into a castle or a roaring ocean, to teach you how … Continue reading It’s all about the books!
Today I'm sharing Catherine Emmett's debut picture book, 'King of the Swamp.' Now it's time for you to meet McDarkly... McDarkly takes great pride in his swamp. To some, it is dark and dank and smelly but to McDarkly, it's home. He proudly plants new flowers in his garden and tends to them lovingly. However, … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘King of the Swamp,’ by Catherine Emmett, illustrated by Ben Mantle.
Today I’m bringing you a charming tale of a boy and his dog. Or rather, a dog and his boy... This brilliant and totally charming tale is cleverly told from the flipped perspective of a ‘pet’ dog. The story begins on Christmas Day when boy and dog first meet. It’s love at first sight and … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘I always Wanted One,’ by Olivier Tallec.
If you haven’t had the pleasure of reading any of Tracey Corderoy’s picture books yet, you have a whole treasure trove of fabulous titles ahead of you to try. In this blog post, I’ll be sharing her latest picture book, ‘Impossible.’ Dog has busy life in the city. By day, he washes and returns his … Continue reading ‘Impossible,’ by Tracey Corderoy, illustrated by Tony Neal.
With the Stone Age a firm fixture on the primary school national curriculum, it’s always useful to have some new texts up your sleeve to use along with tried and tested favourites. Today I’m going to share with you a selection of titles I’ve been sent which would fit well with a Stone Age topic … Continue reading Stone Age, Bone Age
We are absolutely huge fans of Caryl Hart’s awesome series of Albie picture books. Each story is a leap into the imagination of a young boy with a habit of attracting adventure and mischief! When my own boys were younger, we’d have Albie’s adventures on bedtime story repeat. They had several favourites, one of the being … Continue reading Albie’s 10th Anniversary Tour! ‘How to Win a Monster Race,’ by Caryl Hart, illustrated by Ed Eaves.
I love Duncan Beedie’s picture books - funny, wise and beautifully illustrated. Today I have one of his new titles to share with you: ‘Oof Makes an Ouch.’ AND a piece from Duncan about where the early idea for this brilliant book came from along with a peek in his sketchbook. Meet Oof and Pib. … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Oof Makes an Ouch!’ by Duncan Beedie.
Bonjour! Today I’m sharing one of my favourite picture books of the summer: ‘Monsieur Roscoe On Holiday.’ Readers learn how to speak French whilst they follow Monsieur Roscoe and his Goldfish, Fry, en vacances. After packing, the dynamic duo head to the countryside to go camping with with their friend, Eva. Then skiing in the … Continue reading ‘Monsieur Roscoe On Holiday,’ by Jim Field.
Library Girl and Book Boy 